An glance at the importance of posture in health and well-being
“Sit up straight and stop slouching!” Words one might hear from a doting grandparent. Growing up, older generations did not have cellphones, tablets, gaming devices, laptops, and desktops that younger generations must contend with. Average life back in the day was also far more physical. That and people interacted face-to-face far more than our overconnected, constantly-plugged-in, post-pandemic generations. As a consequence, there was a clear, intuitive understanding about good posture. Even as recently as my childhood, when I was a bit of bookworm and developed a bit (actually quite a bit) of bad posture, I recall how most people around me had decent, strong posture. Sadly, among today’s up-and-coming generations mirred in hours of screen time, my old posture would not seem abnormal.
Prolonged poor posture can result in muscular imbalances in holding pattern and subsequent disorder and dysfunction of the vertebrae. While each individual’s exact alignment may differ, common categories of postural imbalance include:
These postural imbalances arise from a combination of stressors and poor positioning throughout daily life. For instance, one study compared 30 workers (group I) who worked at a computer for 6h+ and 30 individuals who rarely worked with computers (group II). Both the angle of protusion of the head (measuring across precise points on the head and neck) and center of gravity (via computerized dynamic posturography) were measured. Statistically significant differences (\(p<.05\)) between groups were measured between groups. Group I had a greater average angle of foward head posture, and a greater average anterior tilt in center of gravity
Another study examined the link between cell phone use duration and forward head posture and associated pain/fatigue. A sample of 34 adults were divided into 3 groups: 11 used for 10 minutes, 12 used for 20 minutes, and 11 used for 30 minutes. Group 2 showed elevated fatigue in the upper left trapezius. Group 3 showed elevated fatigue in the left cervical erector spinae and across both upper trapezius muscles. Measurements of pain showed that all groups had greater average pain after use, and group 3 had greater pain than group 1 after use as well. The study demonstrated how excessive cell phone use induces muscular imbalances that can lead to forward head posture and other postural misalignments. The study recommended observing correct posture while using cell phone and tablet devices alongside frequent breaks of 20 minutes or longer
Yet another study looked at the impact of intense mental concentration alongside psychosocial stressors on forward head posture and muscular activation. Participants were given challenging work on a computer, and some participants were further subjected to various stressors. Intense concentration alone produced forward head posture and stress did not add much to the effect in this study. However, stress was associated with a significant activation, as measured by electromyography, in the upper trapezius muscles. This study indicated that stress may be carried primarily in the trapezius muscles. Over time this may result in faulty recruitment patterns and further postural misalignments. The authors emphasized stress prevention in workplaces to prevent trapezius myalagia
Postural imbalances have been linked to a host of health ailments and even accelerated aging. This section details a few possible ill-effects of posture misalignment. This is not exhaustive but gives a sense of the sorts of the generative conditions that can arise from chronic postural imbalance.
One research group at the University of Leeds found a connection between neck posture and changes in cardiorespiration. The team was motivated by previous findings that chiropractic manipulations, particularly of the C1 vertebrae, can induce changes in blood pressure. Their research revealed that the muscles of the neck, especially the suboccipital muscle group, send afferent signals to the intermedius of the medulla, a brain stem component. In turn this part of the brainstem sends signals to the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS). The NTS is directly involved in altering cardiorespiratory variables such as blood pressure and breathing rate. In short, the evidence suggests that crooked neck really could be cranking up the blood pressure
Indeed proper respiration, that is deep, diaphragmatic breathing, has itself been associated with a host of health benefits
A study out of Japan found a strong association between poor posture and cognitive decline. The study sampled 411 individuals from 50-89 years of age, analyzing inviduals within decade of age (50s, 60s, etc.) and by gender (202 male, 209 female). Participants took two different cognitive assessments and had their sagittal spinal balance (front to back) measured through radiological methods. The spinal imbalance in the sagittal plane was measured as the sagittal vertical axis. The study found sagittal vertical axis anteriorization (SVAA) (i.e. forward leaning) was significantly associated with cognitive decline. For males SVAA > 70 mm over 80, > 90 mm over 70, and > 100 mm at any age were more likely to exhibit cognitive decline. For women at any age, SVAA > 70 mm was associated with increased risks of cognitive decline. For clear radiological images of SVAA, see ‘figure 3’ in the paper
For a fun talk on posture, see fitness expert Roger Frampton’s TEDx talk: Why Sitting Down Destroys You - Roger Frampton
For a quick but informative clip see Murat Dalkilinç’s TED-Ed presentation: The Benefits of Good Posture